Seasonal Wonders: Spring

If I could bottle up the scent of a mild May evening, shafts of sunlight bathing woodland carpets gold, I would. I hold onto spring long after it is gone, dreaming of the next bloom with which I can venture out with my camera and capture everything it is I love so much about this most magical time of year.

In stolen hours observing the mudflats and salt marshes on the Humber's northern banks, and filming English bluebells in an ancient woodland, this season has delighted me like all the springs before it. From aptly-named reed buntings to tawny mining bees, spring truly seems the busiest season, with each new encounter a reminder of the variety of life playing out at scale around us.

When I started my blog, I hoped to share my own encounters with the natural world through photography and nature writing. For so many people, nature is the last thing on their mind, a distant word, and even more distant world, lost amongst the dizzying turns of everyday life. But through photography and reflecting on my experiences, spring is a perfect reminder to slow down, observe and revel in the joys of our wild world. Here are some of my seasonal highlights captured so far.

Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

There aren't many things I love more than a bird named after its behaviour or preferences. Although on this occasion captured atop a blackthorn hedge, I've also spotted them this spring perched among the reeds at my local nature reserve, doing exactly what it says on the tin. With a thick white Tudor collar around their neck and distinctive black head, otherwise quite sparrow-like in their appearance, the males are especially striking.

Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

This season has afforded lots of opportunity to photograph roe deer against vivid yellow oilseed. They are a shy species, but when the crops are at their peak, roe deer are often found grazing along the field margins or lying down among the tall grass. It's usually their large ears, protruding from the grass like satellite discs, that give them away like this. We watched this doe and buck, hidden in the grass, for a couple of minutes from the car.

Common Linnet (Carduelis cannabina)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

On a walk down my favourite woodland track, I stopped to watch this linnet which was bold enough to stay as I photographed it up close, a new species for my camera. There is something really endearing about their smart plumage and rounded body, and I've been studying identification guides to determine if this is a male or female. I believe it's a male with winter plumage, since it lacks the typical rosy breast and head of adult males.

English Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

I wrote a longer piece about my magical experiences in an ancient woodland not far from my home. During April and very early May, the woodland floor is carpeted in a sea of vivid violet bluebells and pungent wild garlic, basking in the late-setting sun's golden glow. Here, we have seen Eurasian jays (Garrulus glandarius), roe deer, and a host of songbirds whose choruses rival the most elaborate of symphonies. The bluebells and wild garlic are now long gone, but the carpet remains as rolling hills of lush green between the trees.

Tawny Mining Bee (Andrena fulva)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

Alive with a flurry of insect activity, this cherry blossom tree had attracted a female tawny mining bee as part of its pollinating workforce. This is a solitary, ground-nesting species, with females distinguishable by their gingery tufted hair and larger size compared to males. Along with western honey bees (Apis mellifera) and other pollinators, this female was collecting pollen and nectar for her larvae underground which will also overwinter there.

Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

A small dot in the distance at first, this male wheatear took us by surprise. The first we ever saw was perched on a rock beside one of the Isle of Mull's spectacular sea lochs, but we saw this bird much closer to home along the northern banks of the Humber. My photograph won't win any awards but it's special to have seen an unusual bird for my local patch, even if you do need to zoom.

Muntjac Deer (Muntiacus reevesi)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

Picking her way through long grasses, silent and shy, this female muntjac deer was another complete surprise. Before this, the only muntjacs I've seen have been in the south, usually from a distance as my train carries me past rolling fields and hedgerows. For a few minutes, I watched her sharing a field with a herd of cows, grazing tentatively. In the low light, I struggled with my camera settings, but I was able to take a few quick photographs before we left her alone after a truly special encounter.

Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

In one of my favourite encounters of the spring, under dappled light in a carefully marked woodland clearing, a male great spotted woodpecker spent an afternoon provisioning his chick, yet to fledge the nest. At my local nature reserve, signs have been placed guiding visitors to a quiet viewpoint at which these woodpeckers can be observed. The clearing is taped across, minimising disturbance to the birds during this precious time, and listening out for the sharp call of the adult as he approached the nest, I felt a sense of wonder at being able to witness such an incredible display of behaviour. Look out for a blog with lots more images from this encounter coming soon.

Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus scirpaceous)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

Another bird which does as the name suggests, the well-concealed reed warbler. Except on this day, they made a few appearances higher up in the reed bed, at times even clutching strands of the reed in their beaks like a rose. They do have a distinctive eye stripe like many warblers, but it's less prominent than that of a sedge warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) which can also be found here. I loved the dreamy light as I waited for these birds to settle, their song my only clue to their location beyond the occasional rustle of the reeds.

Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus)

Image Credit: Madelaine Stannard (@madelaineinthewild)

This male cuckoo led us right across the reserve on the trail of his famous call. Louder and louder, until he flew across the treeline in front of us, giving me my first confirmed cuckoo sighting, at least that I can remember. I'm always finding something new to learn of and love in nature, and this iconic, brood-parasitic bird has just made the list.

About the Author:

Madelaine is a Zoology and Science Communication graduate, now working as a Guide at a BIAZA-accredited aquarium. Passionate about engagement with science and nature, and rediscovering a love of writing, she aims to document her experiences with the wild through blogs, wildlife photography, and tales of the natural world.